Wollongong's rising MMA star Colby Thicknesse's next bout will be for the Hex FS bantamweight title after securing a unanimous decision victory on his return to the cage on Saturday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Thicknesse claimed his bout with Melbournian Michael Mannu on all three judges cards, two calling it a shutout for the 24-year-old whose elite ground game was again on show.
The win ended a 13-month hiatus from the cage amid a frustrating run of injuries. He'll now be chasing silverware in his next bout after moving to 4-0 with the win.
It came after he copped a decent barrage of kicks from Mannu early on before taking control of the bout on the mat through rounds two and three.
"I have a habit of getting caught in the first round and coming back, so obviously it's still here," Thicknesse said.
"I should obviously get rid of that going forward, but fair play to him. I felt very good coming in here after 13 months.
"There's [been] a lot of injuries, even leading in this camp, it wasn't the best, but mentally I just knew I had to push through, get in here and get that ball rolling again.
"I lose the plot when I'm not fighting so I just want to thank (coach) Joe Lopez and everybody at Freestyle Fiighting Gym.
"It's been 13 months since I've been in here and it's unreal to have these guys, not only physically helping me with training, but being a professional athlete having all this time off, it does mess with your head.
"To have a good network of people around you supporting you, keep you going forward really makes all the difference in my life.
"I can't thank everybody who supported me enough for that."
Earlier in the evening, Freestyle MMA stablemate Mitch Harmison suffered his first ever defeat, losing two of three rounds to Dee Samasoni on all the judges cards.
Mitch Jennings
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
